While managing the celebration of the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia, former footballer Gerard Piqué and former president of the Spanish Federation Luis Rubiales were also dedicated to the urban development business. This is revealed by a UCO report, to which ABC had access, according to which both the former Barcelona center back and the disqualified leader sought their opportunity for economic benefit by trying to build a seven-star stadium, a sports city and a hotel in the country. Arab. They also planned the idea of another construction bid in Egypt. According to the UCO report, the works were to be undertaken under a Gruconsa contract. The Civil Guard revealed in other documents sent to the judge in the case that during Rubiales’ time as president of the RFEF, contracts were assigned to this company in exchange for making payments to the company Dismatec, managed by his friend Francisco Javier Martínez Alcaide, ‘Nene’, and which allegedly served as an “instrument to manage” his family assets. According to investigators, Gruconsa even prepared a project presentation that was shared with staff from the Federation and Piqué’s company, Kosmos. The construction company signed an agreement for 20 million euros with the company Dismatec in exchange for the award of said project, a benefit that, as has been explained, would have been destined, among others, to Rubiales. Related news standard No Request to trace money in Saudi Arabia The UCO says that Piqué was an “active part” in the standard ‘Super Cup’ contract No Football | RFEF Cueto places Piqué in the signing of a Super Cup contract at the Isabel Vega airport in Saudi Arabia. The RFEF signed a contract with the Saudi company SELA to celebrate the Spanish Football Super Cup in Arabia until 2029. The RFEF guaranteed payment of 40 million euros annually, just as Piqué was guaranteed an annual commission of 4 million for his company Kosmos. A report from the General Intervention of the State Administration (IGAE), an entity dependent on the Ministry of Finance, concluded that the Federation and Rubiales set Piqué’s commission in the deal with the Arabs. Both the former president of the Federation and the former Barça player maintain the opposite: it was the Arabs who agreed with the footballer and paid him. Also in Egypt While negotiations were underway to bring the Super Cup to Arabia, Rubiales and his legal advisor Tomás González Cueto showed “a significant interest” in being part of an urban investment project in the country on the Arabian Peninsula and also in Egypt. The RFEF directors discussed different alternatives with Piqué and introduced Gruconsa into the conversations. After evaluating different business avenues at an individual level, they opted for the ‘7-star’ football stadium project with a sports city included, leisure complexes and hospitality. The transition to the real estate world in Arabia and Egypt began on December 28, 2020, when the former Barça center back sent an audio to Rubiales. «Rubí I have a project for you, you are going to be amazed. I’m telling you, eh, related to the issue of construction etc, etc. In Egypt and Saudi. I’m in Dubai now, I’ll tell you when you have time. The former president responds. “Excellent”. And Piqué abounds on the topic: “A 1bn project in Saudi”. And in another WhatsApp: “I 600m in Egypt.” The next day, December 29, Rubiales transmitted to Cueto the conversation he had had with Piqué about possible constructions in Arabia and Egypt. And the investigators are struck by a phrase from the former president: “Let’s see if we can get these people into the works there,” in reference to Gruconsa, the company investigated by the Civil Guard after the searches at the headquarters of the Civil Guard. Federation. In capturing new business opportunities, they also targeted Bahrain, dealing with Gruconsa and a company called Marco. The Neom project In the pursuit of new income with the Arab country, Rubiales and Piqué speak again on February 10, 2021 The former president sends him an article from the newspaper ‘Expansión’ about Neom, the Saudi megaproject to build a city from scratch in the northwest of the country that includes a smart linear eco-city called ‘The. Line’, a desert ski resort, a floating industrial complex and a super luxury tourist resort. Neom aspires to host the Winter Olympic Games in the future, although at the moment it has not achieved this. The next three Winter Olympic events will be held in Cortina d’Ampezzo (2026), the Alps (2030) and Salt Lake City (2034). Piqué responds to Rubiales regarding this proposal: “We have to be there.” To which Rubiales replies: «Totally. You have to be there.” On the trip that the Federation is planning in 2021 to Saudi Arabia after signing the Super Cup agreements, Piqué asks Rubiales not to appear in the photo with the Saudi authorities to avoid his connection with the RFEF. «Rubi, Abdulaziz asks me if they can take photos of our visit. I have told him that I prefer not to be there, not to go out, because well, due to the implication that we have always said with you, with the federation…”. In the documentation provided by the UCO to the judge it is derived, according to the telephone interventions, that the ‘7 star stadium’ project advanced over time. On August 4, 2021, lawyer Martínez Cueto sent Piqué a document called ‘MasterPlan’ with information about the expansion of the idea: in addition to a football stadium in Ryad, there would be a sports city, a shopping center, a restaurants and shops, business centers, train station and hotels. The UCO report points to the multiple employment of leaders in the Federation. Like the message that Cueto sent to José María Timón (director of staff of the president of the RFEF) on October 22, 2021, in which he broke down the topics to be discussed in an upcoming meeting. He talks about “RFEF matters” and “non-federation matters”. Among the RFEF, day-to-day issues: Torrejón, Las Rozas, JT complaint… Among the non-federation issues, Piqué, Jobchain, Bitci, the stadium in Saudi Arabia and the stadium in Andorra stand out. Kosmos is the owner of FC Andorra. Rubiales was tense about Gruconsa’s negotiations over the stadium, “I have Luis on fire, how did it go,” says one of the WhatsApp users investigated by the UCO. “If this happens, there is money for everyone,” commented Ángel González Segura, director of Gruconsa’s Southern zone. Dismatec and Gruconsa signed a contract for the award of the ‘7 Star Stadium’ project with a price of 20 million euros. According to the UCO document, “the profit of Rubiales could be included in said price.”
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